JPH09239078A - Iron head for golf and iron set formed by using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a head for irons which makes the shot by the irons of golf exact, makes a swing easy and easily increases a carry and an iron set which has the sp. gr. and volume meeting the shaft numbers, etc., so as to comply with such tasks. SOLUTION: The entire part of the head 1 of the iron is formed of the uniform material of metal and the sp. gr. thereof is specified within a range of 4.0 to 7.0. More specifically, a titanium alloy contg. Cr, etc., is produced by a precision casting method, etc. In the case the iron set is formed, the respective heads 1 are varied in the sp. gr. by the shaft numbers and kinds; for example, the sp. gr. of the heads is increased with an increase in the numerical value of the shaft numbers.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an iron head used for golf and an iron set using this head.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Golf irons are generally composed of 2-9 irons, pitching wedges and sand wedges, and may also include 1 driving iron. For these heads, forged and cast materials made of soft iron or stainless steel have been used for a long time.
Although the shot feeling at the time of impact such as soft iron was suitable for the golfer's aim, the specific gravity is about 7.8 in each case.
Because of the large size, the head as a whole was small in relation to the force required for swing, and the sweet spot on the face surface was also narrow. Therefore, it was difficult for the golfer to obtain the target direction and distance, and the probability of getting a nice shot was low. This was also a cause for general golfers and the like to not be able to psychologically take a drastic shot, and to extend the flight distance unnecessarily.

In order to solve such a problem, it is conceivable to make a large iron head using a lightweight aluminum alloy for casting (specific gravity of about 2.7), but since the strength of the face surface is low, it is not possible to hit the ball when it hits it. It is easy to cause local deformation and cracks. Moreover, since the specific gravity is small, the head becomes extremely large, and there is another problem that an iron set using this head cannot be stored in a caddy bag.

Further, it seems that the application of titanium to an iron head is being considered, but the head used in the irons currently on the market is as shown in the vertical sectional view of FIG. 4 (A). In addition, the face plate 22 made of titanium is fitted or screwed on the face surface of the head body 20 made of soft iron, and as shown in FIG. 4 (B), conversely brass is attached to the back face side of the head body 30 made of titanium. There is one in which a metal plate 32 having a large specific gravity is fitted. Since these have a composite structure that uses different materials for each usage site so as to complement the advantages and disadvantages of soft iron and titanium, prepare the head body and face plate or back face plate individually, Since forced fitting, brazing, screwing, etc. are performed, this has led to an increase in manufacturing man-hours and an increase in cost.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems in the prior art, makes the head larger in size than the conventional soft iron head, expands the sweet spot of the head, and provides an accurate shot for a golfer. It is an object of the present invention to provide a golf iron head that enables the swinging to be performed easily, and can reduce the number of manufacturing steps and the cost, and an iron set using the head.

[0006]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention was made by paying attention to controlling the specific gravity of the head of an iron, and the entire head is made of a uniform metal material. And a specific gravity thereof is in the range of 4.0 to 7.0.
Specifically, the material is a golf iron head made of a general titanium alloy, and further, the material is titanium, and the specific gravity adjusting element and / or the strength improving element include Cr, Al, V, Sn, Cu, Fe, Ni,
We propose a golf iron head made of a titanium alloy to which Co, Mo, W, Nb, Ta, Re, O, N, C, etc. are added individually or in combination. Of these, especially 10-30
% Cr alloy containing titanium and Nb, Ta
A head made of titanium alloy that is a single or composite of
It has an appropriate specific gravity and volume, and a hardness of Hv300-400, which has high toughness and wear resistance. In this Ti-Cr alloy,
If Cr is less than 10%, an increase in specific gravity cannot be expected so much, and C
When r exceeds 30%, the toughness starts to decrease, so the above range is made desirable.

Further, the present invention is an iron set using the above-mentioned golf iron head, wherein the specific gravity of the head is made different depending on the iron number of each iron, specifically, the iron set. The present invention also proposes a golf iron set in which the specific gravity of the head of an iron or a group of irons having a large number of is larger than the specific gravity of the head of an iron or a group of irons having a small number of counts.

[0008]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, the present invention will be described on the basis of embodiments for better understanding. In order to set the specific gravity of the iron head within the range of 4.0 to 7.0, a titanium alloy having a specific gravity within the above range was used by adjusting the type and amount of the additive element based on titanium. As a specific example, among the irons, Ti-6% for the 2 to 4 long irons (also used as extra clubs) that are difficult for general golfers to hit
A titanium alloy having a composition of Al-4% V (indicating that 6% Al and 4% V are contained in titanium, the same applies hereinafter) and having a specific gravity of 4.5,
A titanium alloy having a composition of Ti-10% Cr and a specific gravity of 4.67 was used. First, each of these titanium alloys was magnetically levitated and melted, and then the head 1 was manufactured by precision casting in which the molten metal was sucked into a mold by utilizing a differential pressure in a reduced atmosphere. As a comparative example, the specific gravity is 7.
An iron head 10 of the same count was manufactured using 8 soft irons. FIG. 1 shows the heads 1 and 10 of the 3-iron. The weight and loft angle (angle between the center line of the shaft and the face surface of the head) of each count were the same for both. Further, a long iron was manufactured by connecting a shaft to each of these heads 1 and 10, but the shaft of the present invention was made 0.5 inch longer than the comparative example. Furthermore, 10 golfers with various skills were made to hit the ball 10 times with each iron, and the average flight distance for each iron was measured. The results are shown in Table 1 together with the volume of each head.

[0009]

[Table 1]

It can be seen from Table 1 that the iron head using two kinds of titanium alloys of the present invention has a larger volume in all three counts than the comparative example. Incidentally, the so-called face thickness (height in the vertical direction) at the center of the face surfaces 2 and 12 of the head of No. 3 iron is 50 mm for h1 of FIG. 2 (A) in the head 1 of the present invention. , H2 in the same figure (B) of the head 10 of the comparative example is only 46 mm,
It can be seen that in each head 1 of the present invention, the area of the face surface 2 is expanded by about 20% as compared with the comparative example. Further, it is understood that the iron flight distance of each iron number is 10 to 20 yards longer in the iron by the head 1 of the present invention than in the comparative example. In particular, in the case of using a titanium alloy of Ti-10% Cr, the hardness and high toughness make it easy to obtain a hydro ball hitting trajectory, and the flight distance can be extended most. It is clear that the difference in the flight distance as compared with the comparative example is caused by the enlargement of the sweet spot due to the enlargement of the head 1 of the present invention and the lengthening of the shaft accompanying the enlargement of the head 1. is there. In other words, if the head has the same weight, there is no discomfort or hindrance in the swing even if the shaft is lengthened due to the increase in size of the head, and since this large head gives the golfer a sense of security, it is possible to take good shots. It seems to have been

The alloy-forming element added to titanium is used for adjusting the specific gravity of the head and / or improving the strength.
Cr, Al, V, Sn, Cu, Fe, Ni, Co, M
Required amounts of o, W, Nb, Ta, Re, etc. are added individually or in combination, and O, N, C are added individually or in combination for the purpose of improving the strength. Therefore, the titanium alloy used for the iron head of the present invention is the Ti-6% Al used above.
In addition to α + β type titanium alloy represented by -4% V, Ti-10 to 30% Cr alloy used above, or α type titanium alloy (Ti-8
% Al-1% Mo-1% V, Ti-5% Al-2.5% Sn) and β-type titanium alloys (Ti-13% V-11% Cr-3% AL etc.) are used. can do. Further, the head manufacturing method is not limited to the magnetic levitation melting-precision casting method which enables an excellent near net shape, and various other methods such as other casting methods, hot / warm forging methods, and cutting methods. Can be used.

Next, the case where the present invention is applied to a full iron set will be described. For the head material, the long irons 2 to 4 (Figs. 3 (a), (b) and (c)) are made of Ti-22% V-3% Al alloy with specific gravity of 4.6, Ti-12% Cu alloy with a specific gravity of 4.8 is used for the 5th to 7th irons (Fig. 3 (d), (e), (f)) of the middle iron, and the short irons (8th and 9th, not shown). ) Is a Ti-20% Cu alloy with a specific gravity of 5.0,
Furthermore, for the wedges (pitching wedge: PW, sand wedge: SW, Fig. 3 (g), (h)), a Ti-28% Cu alloy with a specific gravity of 5.2 was used, and the head was manufactured by the same precision casting method as above. Each was manufactured. The volume of these iron heads is shown in Table 2 along with the weight.

[0013]

[Table 2]

Further, using only the above Ti-Cr alloy, the Ti-10% Cr alloy (specific gravity 4.67) is used for the long iron so as to change the specific gravity of each iron head by controlling the added amount of Cr.
Ti-20% Cr alloy (specific gravity 4.9) for middle iron, and Ti-30% Cr alloy for short iron and wedge.
Each head was manufactured in the same manner as described above by using (specific gravity 5.2). The volumes of these iron heads are shown in Table 3 together with their respective weights.

[0015]

[Table 3]

The reason why the specific gravity of the head is made different depending on the type of iron (proof) is because of the relationship between the size of the head and the swing and the easiness of accommodating the iron set in the caddy bag. That is, if the wedge head is made of a material having a low specific gravity, the size of the head becomes too large. For example, the sand wedge SW has a Ti-2 with the same specific gravity of 4.6 as the long iron.
When a 2% V-3% Al alloy or a Ti-10% Cr alloy with a specific gravity of 4.67 is used, the head volume is enlarged to about 66cc. For this reason, a general golfer or the like has difficulty in swinging due to the resistance of wind or the like. Therefore, a material having a large specific gravity is adopted so that the volume of the head does not increase as the number of counts increases. In this way, making the specific gravity of the head different depending on the type of iron and the iron number is a full set (1
(Including irons), but also half set (example:
It can also be applied to the case of 3, 5, 7, 9 irons, PW, SW, etc., but of course it can be made different according to the skill, taste and habit of each golfer. In short, it's easy to swing and you can make a nice shot,
Moreover, it is sufficient if the iron set can be accommodated in the caddy bag without the heads of both sides interfering with each other.

The specific gravity of the titanium alloy used for each of the above heads is 4.5 to 5.2. For example, Ti-40% Cu.
When applying the titanium alloy of, the specific gravity will be about 6.0,
Can be used with short and wedge iron heads. Further, if titanium is used as a base, an alloy of a material containing an intermetallic compound such as TiAl in its structure can also be used for the iron head. Of course, by selecting and adjusting the mixing ratio of various metals other than titanium,
It is also possible to obtain an iron head having a specific gravity of 4.0 to 7.0 and an iron set using the iron head.

[0018]

EFFECTS OF THE INVENTION According to the iron head of the present invention, even a general golfer can make a shot that is suitable for the purpose, and can improve the flight distance and directionality of the ball. It is also possible to reduce the number of manufacturing steps and cost. Especially, 10-30% C
The titanium alloy iron head containing r makes it easier to obtain hydro-hit ball characteristics due to its hardness and toughness, which greatly contributes to the improvement of flight distance and stabilizes the shot for a long time due to its excellent wear resistance. It also becomes possible. Further, according to the iron set of the present invention, in addition to the above, it is possible to obtain a set having a head having a specific gravity and a volume corresponding to the type and the iron number of the iron, and according to the skill, taste and habit of each golfer. It is also possible to provide an iron set, and it does not hinder the carrying of the caddy bag.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of heads for a third iron of an example of the present invention and a comparative example.

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view of a central portion of each iron head shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a side view showing the iron set of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional view of a central portion of a conventional iron head.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 ……………………………… Iron head of the present invention 10 ………………………… Comparative iron head 20,30 …………………… Conventional iron head (main body)

[Table 1]

[Table 2]

[Table 3]

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A golf iron head, wherein the entire head is made of a uniform metal material and has a specific gravity in the range of 4.0 to 7.0. 2. The material is a titanium alloy.
An iron head for golf according to 1. 3. The material is titanium, and Cr, Al, as a specific gravity adjusting element and / or a strength improving element,
V, Sn, Cu, Fe, Ni, Co, Mo, W, Nb,
The golf iron head according to claim 1 or 2, which is a titanium alloy in which Ta, Re, O, N, C and the like are added alone or in combination. 4. The titanium alloy contains 10 to 30% titanium.
The golf iron head according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the iron head contains Cr. 5. An iron set using the iron head according to claim 1, wherein the specific gravity of the head is different depending on the iron number of each iron. 6. The golf iron set according to claim 5, wherein the specific gravity of the head of the iron or iron group having a large count is larger than the specific gravity of the head of the iron or iron group having a small count.